We are less than a month from the beginning of the Top 20 Prospects (Winter edition) and it is probably a good time to have a look at the progress since the season began. A few quick reminders about the list:

The list below isn’t new, it is a repeat of the summer list with updated stats and injury information.

Players over 50 games graduate (Any graduates will be listed in the final post in the series, last year’s is here).

Players who have been traded or released appear below but their departure is noted.

The list is based on potential and gives zero weight to being close to NHL-ready.

This list likes offense.

This list also likes prospects who can make the NHL in more than one way.

SUMMER TOP 20 (AND MORE)

This is the Summer Ranking, not a new ranking

R Jesse Puljujarvi. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-1-1) this season. The most valuable prospect in the system in the summer, while also remaining a bit of an offensive mystery. His first AHL game featured five shots on goal, we’ll know more at the start of the Winter Top 20.

R Kailer Yamamoto. Edmonton NHL (2gp, 0-0-0). Outstanding offensive potential in a small dynamite package. The fact he beat out Puljujarvi for the NHL job may be a footnote five years from now, but it’s certainly a point of interest entering the ranking process.

RD Ethan Bear. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 1-0-1). Scored a goal in his first AHL game and played a feature role. The competition for playing time should be fierce in Bakersfield among defenders, so getting close to 68 games will be a reflection of a quality season.

LD Caleb Jones. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-1-1). Jones has blossomed into a complete defense prospect, making him that rare player who defies his draft day scouting report. The only question remaining is can he do it at the pro level? Early results (4gp, 0-1-1 in Bakersfield including a cup of coffee last season) are good. I haven’t done the final ranking, but will say Jones’ outstanding performance in training camp was impossible to overlook and we’ll see how things go over the next month.

L Tyler Benson. Injured. Rick Dhaliwal from Sportsnet 650 in Vancouver is reporting Benson may not play with the Vancouver Giants until November. Discouraging news, Benson has played in 33 WHL games in the 16 months since he was drafted. He won’t stay at No. 5 on my Winter ranking.

R Ostap Safin. Saint-John QMJHL (8gp, 3-6-9). Big, skilled winger shoots left and plays right wing. He’s a substantial prospect, no idea why he fell so far in the draft. The Oilers badly need to re-stock the shelves in skill forwards, maybe they caught lightning in a bottle with Safin.

LC Jujhar Khaira. Edmonton NHL (2gp, 0-0-0). He is in the NHL and playing a 4line role, now it’s a matter of keeping the job. The Oilers are in a state of flux with their wingers right now and that could impact Khaira negatively. He needs to be a productive member of a special teams unit, and is playing some (55 seconds a game) in the discipline. The Oilers’ PK is not outstanding in the early days (No. 18), so he remains an option. This is an important year for Khaira.

LD Ziyat Paigin. Bakersfield AHL. The big Russian has fallen behind the other new AHL players, it appears there will be a period of adjustment. He has a monster shot and incredible wingspan, foot speed appears to be an issue.

Stuart Skinner. Lethbridge WHL (5gp, 2.82 .919). Skinner is highly thought of by the Oilers organization and has his Hurricanes at the top of their division in the early days of the WHL season. Played well at rookie camp, good arrows so far.

R Kirill Maksimov. Niagra IceDogs OHL (5gp, 3-4-7). His combination of size, speed and skill immediately makes him one of the most impressive prospects in the system. He has an excellent shot, protects the puck well and has a rambunctious style.

G Dylan Wells. Peterborough OHL (6gp, 3.12 .918). Important year for Wells, he really spiked last season and needs to continue progress. Year over year save percentage progress (.871 to .916) was amazing and his playoff performance (.930) in 2016-17 set him up for this season and early results are solid.

LD Dmitri Samorukov. Guelph OHL (6gp, 0-3-3). Two-way defender with good speed, mobility and he can move the puck. The verbal on him is very strong, early returns this year are positive.

LC Joe Gambardella. Bakersfield AHL. College grad played well in AHL (6gp, 1-2-3) and scored well in college. He didn’t impress in training camp or preseason and didn’t play in the Condors’ opener. We’ll see how he does in the next four weeks.

G Laurent Brossoit. Edmonton NHL (1gp, 0.00 1.000).He looked good after callup last year and played well in preseason. Mopped up in Vancouver and was solid, too. He has 15 NHL games to his credit, slight chance he’ll graduate (25 games) before his ranking.

L Joey Laleggia. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-0-0). From Boxing Day 2016 forward, he went 43gp, 18-13-31 as a LW and is the No. 1 player at that position entering this season in Bakersfield. He shoots like a maniac too (six shots in Game One).

G Nick Ellis. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 3.11 .864) A strong first season of pro has Nick Ellis in the conversation for NHL employment. He gave up three goals on 22 shots in the first game but the long form resume looks good for Ellis. We’ll see where he lands at Christmas.

RC Aapeli Rasanen. Boston College NCAA (1gp, 0-0-0). He has a nice range of skills (two-way ability, good passer) and has delivered solid numbers since draft day. Doesn’t project as a top-end skill center but the Oilers have that covered. He was injured last season, looking forward to seeing him healthy this year.

RD John Marino. Harvard NCAA. I made the mistake of looking past Jeff Petry a decade ago because his college numbers were shy and inconsistent. Not this time. Marino has a nice range of skills, can wheel and move the puck effectively. A quiet offensive season at Harvard obscured his overall success.

RD Ryan Mantha. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-0-0). Mantha was outstanding in preseason with the big club, lasting longer than I expected by several games. Got the start in Game One for the Condors and is clearly a prospect of some note.

LD William Lagesson. Djurgardens SHL (6gp, 0-1-1). He is playing a feature role and doing well in his first SHL games. Lagesson’s TOI is routinely over 20 minutes a game and he appears to be flourishing in his new assignment.

LD Jordan Oesterle. Now with the Chicago Blackhawks organization.

LD Dillon Simpson. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-0-0). Stayed in training camp late and plays a reliable game without a lot of fanfare. His lack of offense likely means 5-6-7 on the depth chart but he could have an NHL career.

L Graham McPhee, Boston College NCAA (1gp, 0-0-0). He delivered surprising boxcars (39gp, 2-8-10) as a freshman in college and hopefully we’ll see a surge this year. Has a nice range of skills, easy to pass over because we don’t see him play. This could be a big season for him.

G Shane Starrett. Wichita ECHL. In his two NCAA seasons, he posted .924 and .925 save percentages, suggesting this is in fact his quality of play. At 23, he is a solid pro prospect.

RC Tyler Vesel. Nebraska-Omaha NCAA. Enjoyed a breakout (39gp, 14-21-35) college season with Omaha one year ago. The question this year surrounds doing it again and possibly winning an NHL contract.

LD Markus Niemelainen. HPK Sm-Liiga (2gp, 0-0-0). He had a strange OHL season and the hope is Niemelainen finds success back home. Has played just two games and is currently injured.

LC Skyler Brind’Amour. Chilliwack BCHL (10gp, 3-2-5). This is one of my favorite moves, the draft and follow. The evidence on Brind’Amour is razor thin, but the blood lines are quality and the bio on him (responsible player) interesting. Early returns in the BC league have him a little shy offensively but we don’t know usage.

L Aidan Muir. Western Michigan NCAA (3gp, 1-1-2). Went 20gp, 2-9-11 for Western Michigan this season, suffered a hand injury that derailed him. He is 6.04, 212 and has one more year of college eligibility. His NHLE (18.5) suggests he may have pro-level offense, we may see him in Bakersfield come spring.

RD Phil Kemp. Yale NCAA. He sounds like a classic shutdown prospect, with shot blocking and defensive positioning among his bullet points. Good skater, defense first, 6.03 and 201. Some indication he may have more offense than scouting reports indicated.

LD Ben Betker. Bakersfield AHL. Big man (6.06, 228) played for Bakersfield (mostly) a year ago, he is on the Condors roster to start the season. The organization has so many defensemen at the pro level now they’re loaning guys like William Lagesson to Euro teams. Betker is in a tough spot.

R Greg Chase. Bakersfield AHL. Went 48gp, 3-11-14 this season, his first full season in the AHL. Chase needs to double that and then some if he hopes to get a second contract. The entire group of 2013 draft picks who haven’t played in the NHL yet are in a spot of bother re: Contracts next summer.

R Patrick Russell. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-0-0). He made a case for himself as a modern Shawn Thornton in preseason and the Oilers had a fairly long look at him. Had some bad shooting luck a year ago, we’ll see if his goal-scoring spikes this winter.

RC Kyle Platzer. Bakersfield AHL. He has not progressed through two pro seasons and time is running out for him in the organization. One of the things he needs to do is get in the lineup.

LD Matthew Cairns. Cornell NCAA. Cairns started in the USHL but wasn’t playing enough, so zipped over to the BCHL,where he posted 18gp, 2-14-16. He is big, got flagged for speed in some of his draft day scouting reports and has a big shot but scored two goals all year. I wonder how much he’ll play at Cornell and very much wonder about last season’s events.

RD Vincent Desharnais. Providence NCAA (2gp, 0-0-0). As is the case with all college men, it’s difficult to get a read on Desharnais.

L Joey Benik. Now playing in Norway.

L Evan Polei. Bakersfield AHL. An AHL contract, his size and skill (6.02, 227 and 33 goals) are intriguing. Good hands, speed the issue and we’ll see. He was a quality junior.

R Dave Gust. Bakersfield AHL.He is 23, 5.10, 174 and had a big college season (39gp, 18-23-41). AHL contract only, I don’t think anyone has seen him play yet.

RC Chad Butcher. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-0-0).Small forward with range of skills, good offense. He is an AHL contract for 2017-18. Speed main weapon, he played in Bakersfield’s first game ahead of a few signed prospects.

ADDITIONS SINCE THE SUMMER TOP 20

Since my summer list, there have been a few worth additions who I will consider for the winter list. Here they are.

R Mitch Callahan. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-0-0). Disappointed in training camp and preseason but he has a strong resume in the minors and we could see him in Edmonton this winter. He is 26.

LC Grayson Downing. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-0-0). He is 25 years old and a skill center at the AHL level. That said, he was just 59gp, 9-16-25 one year ago (40 points in 56 games the previous season).

R Brian Ferlin. Bakersfield AHL. His story is pretty amazing, coming off some significant injuries and I think this season is going to be about getting back to regular status in the AHL.

LD Keegan Lowe. Bakersfield AHL (1gp, 0-0-0). Lowe is one of the players in the mix for recall to Edmonton, I think he’s comparable to Dillon Simpson as a prospect.

G Edward Pasquale. Bakersfield AHL. He is 26, and his last three AHL seasons (.920, .919, .919) show him as a consistent goalie capable of starting at the minor league level.

R Ty Rattie. Bakersfield AHL. Of all the players signed around July 1, Rattie has the biggest opportunity to play in the NHL this season. He did not wow anyone in training camp but can score goals. in the AHL.

LD Yohann Auvitu. Edmonton Oilers. Mobile defender is 28, older for a prospect. Had an uneven training camp and it’s uncertain how much the coach trusts him.

LC Bogdan Yakimov, Neftikhimik KHL (19gp, 2-2-4). I didn’t include him last summer because it seemed he was about to exit. Oilers retained his rights, so he’ll make the winter list.

There are 47 names eligible for the top 20, I think you can make a case for two men at No. 1 overall and here are the NHL games played (up to date) for each man. All require 50 games to graduate save goalies who need just 25.

Ty Rattie 35

Jesse Puljujarvi 28

Jujhar Khaira 27

Yohann Auvitu 25

Laurent Brossoit 15

Mitch Callahan 5

Dillon Simpson 3

Kailer Yamamoto 2

Keegan Lowe 2

Bogdan Yakimov 1

The Oilers have 15 games between now and November 15, the approximate date I’ll begin this year’s Top 20. Only Ty Rattie and Laurent Brossoit are within range of graduating and neither seems likely. Looks like a full boat.

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1) How can you not love the goalies? Ellis, Wells and Skinner – just lovely

2) The fab 4 – Jones has solidified himself at the top of that list in my mind – both as far as NHL readiness and potential. Paigin has dropped a bit in my mind and Mantha risen. Bear is pretty much exactly where I had him a few months ago. Not a sure bet to make the NHL and, if he does, it’ll probably be a couple of years, however, the offensive potential is high – nice ceiling

3) VERY happy about both Safin and Maksimov – Maksimov in particular has impressed me. I have hopes for both these forwards but we are years away.

4) JP likely comes later this year but what exactly do we have there? Such a potential range with the floor likely being a solid 2-way top 6 forward that can help contribute offensively – the fllor

5) Yamamoto hopefully comes next year but may need some AHL time. He is still not a sure bet for an NHL career but he’s shown that its much more of a certainty than it was when he was drafted.

6) Really like Lagesson and Berglund – both are seeing huge minute bumps this year – it seems Lagesson is playing over 22 minutes a game (give or take) and Berglund is putting up some numbers in 17 min or so (give or take).

7) From what I call tell Samorukov is playing 2nd pairing minutes and doing well – the odd bit of offence is there – he is smooth skater with skills – years away though.

OriginalPouzar: 6) Really like Lagesson and Berglund – both are seeing huge minute bumps this year – it seems Lagesson is playing over 22 minutes a game (give or take) and Berglund is putting up some numbers in 17 min or so (give or take).

4 pts in 7gp is pretty impressive for Berglund. I know this is a super small sample size and all, but if he can keep this pace that works out to an NHLe of 28 pts as a 20 yr old. John Klingberg scored at a 26 pt pace (NHLe) in his 20 yr old SHL season. 6’3″, 209lbs right-hander. Woohoo. Hope he keeps it up.

“If any team is familiar with a bad salary cap situation, it’s the Boston Bruins. When Don Sweeney took over as the general manager of the team, part of his job was cleaning up after former Bruins’ general manager Peter Chiarelli who, to his credit built a Stanley Cup team in Boston but simply couldn’t manage the cap when it came down to it.” — from TheHockeyWriters today. I’m thinkin’ Santayana.

I have found myself working the Edmonton International Airport for an off piste bathroom in which to grab a smoke. I was in between one of those feverish attempts at quitting. I have little problem with this unless faced with flying somewhere.

Click on the ‘x’ in the top right corner of the ad. or click on the LT page in the background.

Edit: Or pay for a subscription to the Athletic.

No need to be a jack ass.

Thanks though, I guess I never would have figured out the X…oh, wait, I’ve been posting all this time. So obviously I did know. That’s still not an explanation of the ad or “figuring it out”. That’s just letting it continue.

The last I saw about it was that Lowetide was looking into it. I took from that that some third party took over some control of Lowetide’s website, without his knowledge or consent. Nefarious or subversive or otherwise.

And The Athletic is much different content than one can find here or elsewhere, with postives and negatives. While it really is my business alone whether I have a subscription there or not already, I do, and have for some time.

Great for him. I’m happy, as he was my favourite one of the four To-Be-Stars alongside Nuge (before McDavid). I really hope this works out for him, but not in lieu of Edmonton (no Cups for Colorado on Edmonton’s back!).

Also, Rieder scored last night. He’s doing well. I’m almost just as upset about letting him go early as I am about Nail.

I practice corporate lending law and i’m a co-organizer for (and presenter at) a syposium we are hosting tomorrow morning – got 120 plus corporate bankers and corporate executives coming and we’ve arranged to have two key note speakers – two days before the municipal election here in Calgary we’ve got Ken King and Mayor Nenshi coming to give 45 minutes talks. We have made sure that they will not be in the same room at the same time (King at 8am and Nenshi at noon).

Anyways, I won’t be able to read/comment on the morning blog until afternoon, won’t be able to listen to the Lowdown and won’t be able to find out (1) where Drai lines up at practice (if he is able to skate) and (2) if McLellan is sticking with his disastrous d-parings from yesterday.

I hate not being in the know and being behind the info, even if its just a few hours.

I’m not sure why I’m posting this, nobody cares but it will be interesting to hear what the two keynotes will have to say. Both have indicated they will talk about and answer questions about the arena issue and Ken King has said that he will field questions on hockey ops (although I’m not sure he’s heavily involved).

Professor Q: Great for him. I’m happy, as he was my favourite one of the four To-Be-Stars alongside Nuge (before McDavid). I really hope this works out for him, but not in lieu of Edmonton (no Cups for Colorado on Edmonton’s back!).

Also, Rieder scored last night. He’s doing well. I’m almost just as upset about letting him go early as I am about Nail.

To my knowledge, Reider was not going to sign with the organization so he was going to become a UFA and we were going to lose him for nothing is we didn’t make the trade (which ended being akin t losing him for nothing).

Pescador: Go Yak!!
Could we not have signed Jagr AND still given lots of opportunities to the up & comers?
Kinda looks like a miss from here

I think the Oilers are committed to finding out about Slepy and Caggiula and JP and Yamamoto. I don’t think the Oilers would have traded Nail if Todd McLellan had argued for him. He did not. I’m just thrilled Yak is doing well in his new town.

Lowetide: I think the Oilers are committed to finding out about Slepy and Caggiula and JP and Yamamoto. I don’t think the Oilers would have traded Nail if Todd McLellan had argued for him. He did not. I’m just thrilled Yak is doing well in his new town.

Nail Yakupov: 4 GP, 3G, 2A, 5P

I hope the young man keeps it up and shoves it up the collective ass of everyone who dumped on him.

OriginalPouzar: To my knowledge, Reider was not going to sign with the organization so he was going to become a UFA and we were going to lose him for nothing is we didn’t make the trade (which ended being akin t losing him for nothing).

The problem is – this narrative is not a real thing.

You can nearly always make it work, if you’re willing to. They had no imagination or ingenuity at that time.

Lowetide: I think the Oilers are committed to finding out about Slepy and Caggiula and JP and Yamamoto. I don’t think the Oilers would have traded Nail if Todd McLellan had argued for him. He did not. I’m just thrilled Yak is doing well in his new town.

I understood that the second you wrote & posted it, my argument is that it was possible to do both. But it’s wasted breath at this point.
I am very happy to see Nail succeed, it warms the heart.
Way better then seeing someone with that much talent & personality flame out & end up be resigned to lesser competition

GMB3: Ahh I was on this train last fall. The single TMac quote that pissed me off more than anything he’s done or said was when he was asked about not putting Yak with McDavid.

Indeed. And if that experiment had been tried more, and Yakupov wouldn’t have been the whipping boy in Edmonton for so many years and coaches, I don’t think he’d have felt so spited and wouldn’t have been all, “now I’m glad to go to a real, good team” when arriving in St. Louis.

Sigh. So many what could have beens. Let’s hope Connor surpasses all of those misses and makes it even more worth it, in spite of it all.

I’m sorry, with respect, that is simply speculation. I don’t believe you have any actual information on the dialogue between the player and the team. While unusual, the player could very well have advised that he is not signing with the Oilers knowing that he would become a UFA (or go back in to the draft, depending on age) and confident he will be valued by another organization.

Sure, this could have been due to general management issue but to speculate on the details and what led or did not lead to the trade is, just that, speculation.

OriginalPouzar:
I’m sorry, with respect, that is simply speculation. I don’t believe you have any actual information on the dialogue between the player and the team.While unusual, the player could very well have advised that he is not signing with the Oilers knowing that he would become a UFA (or go back in to the draft, depending on age) and confident he will be valued by another organization.

Sure, this could have been due to general management issue but to speculate on the details and what led or did not lead to the trade is, just that, speculation.

You basically tricked yourself, however.

Read your first few sentences again. It applies to your hypothesis just as well.

If I remember correctly, the common verbal was this:

“Both players must be signed by June 1st or re-enter the draft, so the reasonable explanation that would justify this move is if the Oil didn’t think they would be able to sign Rieder and wanted to convert him into an asset they could get under contract. Knowing what I do of Rieder and his relationship with the Oilers there is nothing to give me that impression, so unless something comes out about that in the next couple of days this appears to just be another absurd error in judgment by Steve Tambellini.”

I remember that I was extra upset because screw Kessy, and I had lived in KW and watched Rieder come up through the Rangers’ system. I was rooting for him ever since having seen one of his first OHL games live and in person.

GMB3: Ahh I was on this train last fall. The single TMac quote that pissed me off more than anything he’s done or said was when he was asked about not putting Yak with McDavid.

That stupid linesman ruined Yak’s career in Edmonton. He was scoring at a point a game with McDavid. By the time he came back from injury, McDavid had other linemates.

I remember when Yak’s stock was still high enough that people were floating the possibility of trading temporarily struggling #1OV Edmonton forward for temporarliy struggling #4OV New Jersey defenceman.

Imagine if we could have gotten Larsson for the cost of Yakupov instead of….(well, I guess I shouldn’t even mention his name).

Lewis Grant: That stupid Dallas Eakins ruined Yak’s career in Edmonton.He was scoring at a point a game with McDavid.By the time he came back from injury, McDavid had other linemates.

I remember when Yak’s stock was still high enough that people were floating the possibility of trading temporarily struggling #1OV Edmonton forward for temporarliy struggling #4OV New Jersey defenceman.

Imagine if we could have gotten Larsson for the cost of Yakupov instead of….(well, I guess I shouldn’t even mention his name).

Lewis Grant: That stupid linesman ruined Yak’s career in Edmonton.He was scoring at a point a game with McDavid.By the time he came back from injury, McDavid had other linemates.

I remember when Yak’s stock was still high enough that people were floating the possibility of trading temporarily struggling #1OV Edmonton forward for temporarliy struggling #4OV New Jersey defenceman.

Imagine if we could have gotten Larsson for the cost of Yakupov instead of….(well, I guess I shouldn’t even mention his name).

I doubt even if Yak didn’t get injured he would have stayed with 97 all season. He was seen as a placeholder for Eberle for the most part.